• Loading stock data...
Tuesday, August 26, 2025
Front Office Sports Honors winners are here! View the 2025 winners

Cowboys-Giants on Amazon Shatters Record for Most-Streamed Regular Season NFL Game

Andrew Dieb-Imagn Images

Heading into Thursday night’s NFC matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants, both teams were 1-2 and both fanbases were already frustrated with their start to the season. 

That didn’t stop America from tuning in. The game, exclusive to Amazon Prime Video, shattered the record for the most-streamed NFL regular season game ever. 

Amazon says it averaged 16.22 million viewers for its Thursday Night Football stream of Dallas’s 20-15 win, according to Nielsen’s Panel Only measurement. 

That topped by 6% the Amazon stream of Cowboys-Seahawks on Nov. 30, 2023, which averaged 15.26 million viewers. 

A Nielsen update Monday morning increased the audience estimate to 17.61 million.

It is not the most-streamed NFL game ever; that title belongs to NBCUniversal’s Peacock stream of the Chiefs-Dolphins Wild Card playoff game, which was the most-streamed NFL game of any kind, averaging 23 million viewers.

With its record-setting performance, Jeff Bezos’s tech giant may be putting to bed the notion that tech streamers can’t attract broadcast-sized audiences for the biggest live games.

Amazon is getting closer to matching NFL broadcast audiences. During the first three weeks of the 2024 season, NFL games averaged 18.6 million viewers across TV/digital, up 10% vs. the same period last year. Over its first three games, TNF on Amazon is averaging 14.88 million viewers, up 25% from last season’s comparable first-three-games average of 11.86 million.

The Cowboys rank right behind the Chiefs as the second-most-popular TV draw this season. The combination of a tight game, two national fan bases, and the country’s largest TV market in the Big Apple, helped drive Amazon’s record-setting night.

The stream of Cowboys-Giants attracted a peak audience of 18.10 million viewers between 9:15 and 9:30 pm ET. That was the largest peak audience ever for TNF. It’s the second time in three weeks that TNF’s game coverage has peaked at 18 million viewers or more. 

Meanwhile, Amazon Prime’s studio show, TNF Tonight, is averaging 1.77 million viewers over the first three games, up 27% from last year’s 1.39 million. TNF Nightcap, the streamer’s post-game studio show, is averaging 2.04 million viewers, up 10% 

As with last season, TNF is also drawing a younger TV audience—roughly seven years younger this season than those watching NFL games on linear TV networks. The median age is 47.6 years old vs. 54.5 for NFL game viewers on CBS, NBC, Fox and ESPN.

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

Donald Trump Jr

Kalshi Advisor Donald Trump Jr. Joins Rival Polymarket Board

Polymarket appears to be on the verge of returning to the U.S.
Veronica Burton

Kalshi, Polymarket Push Limits of Hawking Prediction Markets 

The companies don’t face the same regulatory risk as traditional sportsbooks.

‘You’re Going to Get Beat Up’: The Liberty’s All-Male Practice Squad

A select group suits up weekly to take on the defending champs.
exclusive

Ohio State Bars Dave Portnoy From Stadium in Fox Debut

Portnoy will appear on “Big Noon Kickoff” but not inside the stadium.

Featured Today

The Honey Deuce Effect: How Tennis Perfected the Signature Cocktail

Sold every 1.5 seconds, they total more than $12 million in sales.
Dec 21, 2024; Austin, Texas, USA; Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning (16) warms up as the Texas Longhorns prepare to play the Clemson Tigers in the first round of the College Football Playoffs at Darrell K Royal Texas Memorial Stadium.
August 23, 2025

Schools Are Hesitant to Allow PE Into Their Athletic Departments

Regardless of budget, schools don’t believe the risk is worth the reward.
Oct 2, 2024; Rosemont, IL, USA; Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti speaks with the media during the 2024 Big Ten Women’s Basketball media day at Donald E. Stephens Convention Center.
August 22, 2025

‘Not Ready to Jump In’: Power 4 Commissioners Aren’t Sold on PE

Top leaders in college sports have yet to see a satisfactory proposal.
Nov 23, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin looks at quarterback Drew Allar (15) during the first quarter against the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Huntington Bank Stadium.
August 22, 2025

Private Equity Enters College Sports—Without the Equity

As college football starts, lending agreements have become PE’s best way in.

Annual Football Season Tradition: A High-Stakes Media Blackout Fight

The ongoing Fox–YouTube TV dispute marks an annual media tradition.
August 25, 2025

YouTube TV, Fox Standoff Puts CFB Viewers in Jeopardy

Subscribers could find themselves without access to marquee matchups.
August 26, 2025

6 Burning Questions About Reimagined MLB Rights Deals

MLB’s rights are changing significantly, but questions still remain.
Sponsored

Building A Pro League From Scratch

Front Office Sports and Gainbridge® spotlight what it takes to build a professional women’s soccer league.
August 25, 2025

Netflix to Stream Entire 2026 World Baseball Classic in Japan

Netflix picks up Japanese rights to the upcoming international tournament.
August 25, 2025

Former Tennis Channel CEO Sues Sinclair Over Voided 8-Figure Payday

The former network executive cites a financial pretext to his firing.
August 24, 2025

Bill Belichick Tells UNC Football Team Hulu Series Is Happening

FOS reported last month that the Hulu series was nearing finalization.
Jul 13, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred announces the pick for the Athletics pick during the MLB Draft at The Coca-Cola Roxy.
August 21, 2025

MLB Confident New Rights Will Exceed $550M ESPN Deal

MLB would redistribute rights forfeited by ESPN back in February.